Heritage Walkers Explore Radhakanta Jew Temple With 1929 Baby Austin At 25th DHW

Dhenkanal: The 25th edition of Dhenkanal Heritage Walks (DHW) saw 50 participants from across Odisha exploring a trail around Manipur Village Radhakanta Jew Temple on Sunday.

It began with a visit to the holy shrine, which houses the brass idol of Lord Radha Krishna bought from Nadia in early 20th Century along with a giant “mrudanga” .

Following which, they had a discussion on naming of the village, temple history and rituals observed with senior members of the village and temple committee. The village president Prakash Chandra Mallik spoke about the history of the temple.

The district of Dhenkanal is named after the former tribal king, Dhenka Sabar. Likewise, the village of Manipur, where villagers welcomed the Lord into the newly-constructed temple in 1937, gets its name from “mana,” a local measuring tool. It is believed that the fertile land in Manipur will always yield abundant grains, ensuring that the “mana” never runs empty.

The participants were told that Gopinath Sangram Singh and Sridhar Mangaraj were among those responsible for construction of this temple. There were hardly any “parshwadevata” on the temple wall except that of goddess Saraswati.

Professor Durga Biswal explained that the temple’s distinctive style deviates from the traditional Kalingan “Khakra” or “Rekha” architectural forms, drawing instead from the Bengal style of Krishna temple construction.

The temple priest Rabinarayan Debata spoke about the divine and supernatural aspects of Radhakant Jew, which he claimed in the past saved villagers from water and health issues.

The group then returned to Sadeibareni, known as the artist village for Dhokra, but not to witness the work, but to enjoy the heritage food of Dhenkanal, “bara” prepared at the village shop. One of the fellow travelers, Saranath Mishra, came in a 1929 Baby Austin car, which became a major attraction during the walk.